Gretchen Zarle DVM – Chief of Staff Advisor, Chief of Staff
Bartels Pet Hospital – Brecksville, Ohio
Dr. Zarle graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1989 and has spent most of her career at Bartels Pet Hospital. Brecksville is a suburb of Cleveland and is situated right in the gorgeous Cuyahoga Valley National Park. As Dr. Zarle notes: “We pride ourselves on being high touch/high contact. Our motto is: ‘We treat your pets as if they were our family.’ ”
Why is being involved with Rabies Free Africa important to you?
“I was fortunate to be able to see the program firsthand in Tanzania. A picture began to emerge of a people struggling to contain a deadly problem, a problem that the human medical field has been unable to eliminate. Guy Palmer, director of Rabies Free Africa, said emphatically that it would be veterinarians who solved this puzzle, as we have the most experience and knowledge of the behaviors of animals who spread it. That REALLY struck me – veterinarians can save PEOPLE! Helping privileged pets stay healthy as family members is important, but saving PEOPLE! I felt like a hero! My profession is special, worthy – it can impact the world!”
Tell us about your experiences seeing the vaccination programs and meeting people in the community.
“I came prepared to get sweaty and dusty and vaccinate hundreds of dogs a day, but I was surprised and honored to not just asked to be a ‘worker,’ but to be introduced to the entire program through interaction with the whole community: from the PhD students who have made insane progress with understanding what it takes to make the program successful, to the nurses in a hospital that treats bite victims, to a child who suffered a bite, to the villagers who showed up with dogs to be vaccinated, to one of our drivers who himself was bitten as a child and who suffered the terror of thinking he might die. All of these interactions affected me deeply. This community is doing everything they can to fix the problem – despite their lack of services and resources: no electricity, no communication, no money. I will never feel the same way again about an underserved community – they are smart, willing and hardworking. The community is the reason this program can succeed if it can be well funded and if momentum and education can continue.”
How is your clinic (or clinics) involved with the program?
“I have signed up my own hospital to commit $1 of every rabies vaccine we administer to be given to the program. I have been excited to share the reason for my trip with clients whenever the opportunity comes up to speak of it! One aspect of my employment is to help ‘coach’ other affiliated hospitals in my area. My goal is to introduce the program and to ask other hospitals to sign on to our mission! I feel so passionate about this opportunity that is has become a very easy discussion to broach. I hope that I can be very successful in lighting a fire to use our DVM degrees to do even more good in the world!”
What do you do when you are not at the clinic?
“I teach surgical assisting skills at a nearby vocational high school – and the kids keep me young(ish) and relevant. If I had extra time I would search for new adventures, read a lot of books and keep on learning new things!”
Anything else you would like to share?
“The opportunity to travel to Tanzania to be part of something larger than my life, outside of my normal community, affecting the health of the world and making me even more proud to be a veterinarian was truly a once-in-a lifetime experience for me. I hope I can continue to raise awareness for Rabies Free Africa (and maybe Rabies Free World?) for many years to come!”